Starbucks The Bronx mug: Discovery Series
The Bronx mug from Starbucks' Discovery Series sets the name in muted teal over a dark green circle, with a breakdancer, a boombox, a red trolley, a microscope, a glass-domed greenhouse and a plate of pasta.
- Series
- Discovery Series
- Place
- The Bronx, New York, USA
- Type
- Mug
- Released
- Not confirmed
- Capacity
- 14 fl ozstandard mug size
- SKU
- Not confirmed
Sponsored links: we earn a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
The back-to-school party that started with a quarter
On 11 August 1973, Cindy Campbell needed money for school clothes. She and her brother Clive, who DJed as Kool Herc, rented the recreation room of their apartment building at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx and threw a party [1][2]. The invitations were index cards, drawn by hand [2]. Girls paid 25 cents; boys paid 50 [3]. Herc played two copies of the same record on two turntables, looping the instrumental break from one to the other, a trick he called the merry-go-round [4]. Historian Jeff Chang puts the crowd at around a hundred [3]. People still argue about who deserves credit for hip-hop's start, since others were throwing parties too [5]. When NPR visited in 2023, the room was little changed, low ceilings and a small kitchen, and nothing marked it [3]. The breakdancer on the Bronx mug (2) is moving to music that many trace back to that room.
The mug does not label its drawings, so connecting this one to the story is our reading.
What's on the mug
- 1Lettering
THE BRONX in muted teal capitals on two lines over a dark green circle.
- 2Breakdancer
A breakdancer in red balances on their hands at the far left.
- 3Boombox
A pale green boombox sits below the breakdancer.
- 4Red trolley
A red-and-white trolley with arched windows runs across the middle of the circle.
- 5Microscope and flask
A red microscope and a green flask sit above the trolley.
- 6Glass-domed greenhouse
A greenhouse with a glass dome and glass wings sits below the lettering.
- 7Plate of pasta
A plate of pasta with red sauce sits at the right of the trolley, under a striped awning.
- 8Tall building
A tall building with rows of windows stands at the right, beside the handle.
The photo shows one side of the mug. The back and the area behind the handle are out of view.
Collector notes
- The inside of this mug is pale aqua, which shows at the rim in the photo.
- The lettering reads THE BRONX on two lines in a muted teal that blends into the circle, so it is hard to see in some photos.
Before you buy
THE BRONX runs over two lines in a muted teal that blends into the dark green circle, so it can be hard to read in listing photos. The inside rim is pale aqua.
